ABUJA, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)-Tension erupted on Monday at the Federal Ministry of Finance headquarters in Abuja after protesting indigenous contractors blocked the entrance, stopping the Minister of State for Finance, Doris Uzoka-Anite, from gaining access to the complex.
The protesters, under the aegis of the All Indigenous Contractors Association of Nigeria, sealed off the main gate to protest unpaid debts allegedly owed by the Federal Government.
They accused the government of failing to pay for completed projects, claiming that funds earmarked for the purpose in the 2024 and 2025 budgets had not been released.
The contractors said the prolonged delay had plunged many of their members into severe financial hardship.
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Addressing the protesters, the President of the association, Jackson Nwosu, said the action followed growing unpaid obligations, worsening cash flow challenges, increasing loan defaults and the confiscation of assets belonging to contractors who took loans to execute government projects.
“The government has failed to honour the agreement to pay contractors whose project details had been submitted and verified.
Payments finalised before the closure of the payment portal at the end of December never reflected in our accounts,” Nwosu said.
He dismissed claims by government officials that about 80 per cent of the debts had been cleared, insisting that payments made so far accounted for only 30 to 40 per cent of verified claims.
Nwosu further stated that the issuance of payment warrants stopped in May 2025, even as contractors continued executing projects without funding, pushing total liabilities beyond N4tn.
As Uzoka-Anite arrived at the premises, security operatives attempted to create a passage for her convoy, but protesters resisted, chanting loudly. During the confrontation, a gunshot was heard as security personnel tried to disperse the crowd.
“How many people government go kill ooo… how many people government go kill,” the protesters chanted.
Reacting, the Vice President of AICAN, Fredrick Agada, accused the authorities of intimidation instead of resolving the contractors’ complaints. “This is a peaceful protest. We are harmless. We are just sitting down peacefully, demanding our money, our payment,” he said.
The association’s Secretary-General, Babatunde Oyeniyi, said AICAN had formally engaged the Ministry of Finance, the National Assembly and other relevant agencies since June 2025 without any concrete outcome.
He warned that continued neglect of indigenous contractors was damaging the local economy and deepening financial distress within the sector.
The association maintained that the protest would persist until all verified payments were fully settled, stressing that indigenous contractors should not be treated differently from foreign firms, whose payments, it alleged, are processed promptly.
Similar protests were held last year at the National Assembly Complex and the Ministry of Finance as pressure intensified on the government to clear outstanding obligations.
In December 2025, President Bola Tinubu set up a multi-ministerial committee to address debts owed to federal contractors, estimated at about N1.5tn.
Members of the committee include the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun; the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Atiku Bagudu; the Director-General of the Budget Office, Tanimu Yakubu; the Minister of Works, Dave Umahi; the Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Ahmed Dangiwa; and the Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service, Zacch Adedeji.
Meanwhile, a Senate committee has invited Edun to explain the prolonged delay in settling contractors’ claims.
The Federal Government earmarked N1.7tn in the 2026 Appropriation Bill to clear outstanding debts owed to contractors for capital projects executed in 2024.
A review of the proposed 2026 national budget shows that the allocation falls under the line item “Provision for 2024 Outstanding Contractor’s Liabilities,” indicating official acknowledgment of delayed payments amid recent protests.
The provision follows sustained pressure from indigenous contractors and civil society groups, who in 2025 raised concerns over unpaid contractual obligations.
Beyond the N1.7tn earmarked for 2024 liabilities, the government also allocated N100bn to a separate line item tagged “Payment of Local Contractors’ Debts/Other Liabilities”, which may cover legacy debts, smaller contract claims or unsettled obligations not fully captured in the current audit.
The combined N1.8tn allocation forms part of the N23.2tn capital expenditure proposed in the 2026 fiscal plan, aimed at accelerating infrastructure development while addressing past financial commitments.